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Apple Says It Will 'Contribute' $350 Billion in the US Economy Over the Next 5 Years (cnbc.com)
Apple said on Wednesday it will invest $350 billion in the U.S. economy over the next five years, touting the creation of 20,000 new jobs and a new campus thanks, in part, to the prospect of tax reform. From a report: The company said it expects tax repatriation payments of about $38 billion, indicating that it will bring a portion of its $250 billion overseas cash back to the U.S. As of November, the company had $268.9 billion in cash, both domestically and overseas. The job creation will focus on direct employment, but also suppliers and its app business, which it had already planned to grow substantially. "We have a deep sense of responsibility to give back to our country and the people who help make our success possible," chief executive Tim Cook said in a statement.
...in a positive light?
In debates about Christianity, there are two groups: those looking for answers, and those looking to just ask questions.
Thursday morning, Walmart had a flashy announcement: Thanks to corporate tax cuts, it was giving its employees bonuses of up to $1,000. Walmart and President Trump pointed to the announcement as proof that the corporate tax cuts are really a boon to working-class Americans.
This announcement, as ThinkProgress reported earlier, was much more complicated than it first sounds.
Walmart employees are eligible for the $1,000 bonus only if theyâ(TM)ve worked at the company for 20 years. Most Walmart employees, of course, havenâ(TM)t worked there that long. Those employees will receive a smaller bonus based on seniority. Walmart didnâ(TM)t explain exactly how the sliding scale will work, but said the total value of the bonuses will be $400 million. Walmart has about 2.1 million employees, which works out to be an average bonus of about $190.
The one-time bonus Walmart announced this morning amounts to just over 2 percent of the total value of the tax cut to the company.
In fiscal year 2017, Walmart had pre-tax profits of about $20.5 billion and paid an effective federal tax rate of around 30 percent. With a new corporate tax rate of 21 percent, the corporate tax cut is worth at least $1.85 billion to Walmart every year. Since this cut is permanent, the true benefits to Walmart will grow much larger over time. But itâ(TM)s safe to say that, over 10 years, this corporate tax cut will be worth over $18 billion to Walmart.
But now it appears the announcement was timed carefully to cover for thousands of unannounced layoffs.
Business Insider reports that today, Walmart is abruptly closing numerous Samâ(TM)s Clubs stores across the United States. In some cases âoeemployees were not informed of the closures prior to showing up to work on Thursdayâ and âoelearned that their store would be closing when they found the storeâ(TM)s doors locked and a notice announcing the closure.â
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Who cares about "illegal"? This is Apple. They claim to be good global citizens. Meanwhile they are using slave labor to build their products and actively trying to avoid paying taxes. So they need to drop the whole SJW, good company act. Hypocrites.
Slave labor? People aren't forced to work at FoxConn. Surely work conditions suck, but that doesn't mean people are held by chains without pay. They get paid, substantially more than what they would make back at the village, and many actually see it as a opportunity to climb up (which they do) as opposed to the many people we have here that do nothing to learn new skills and keep dreaming about having those level-pulling 9-5 jobs that are forever gone.
These workers are actually not the poorest from their village. Educationally they are the cream top from Rural China, and go there to climb up, not to escape rampant poverty.
I suggest you read "Factory Girls: From Village to City in a Changing China" by Leslie T. Chang. Obviously we want those workers to have better conditions (which they are getting, incrementally). And there is no doubt there is injustice in the system (in particular sexism.)
But to call the slave workers is just idiotic, and it simply demeans the very workers that chose to try their luck in the factory lines.